A regional training workshop on “Key enabling factors for the successful local production and supply of quality-assured medical products” took place from 26 – 28 November 2019 in Bangkok, Thailand. The WHO Local Production Programme with the support of WHO Country Office Thailand, organized the three-day workshop. The workshop was supported by international partners from The Global Fund, Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), UNCTAD, UNDP, UNICEF and WHO.
The goal of the training workshop was to strengthen the capacity of local manufacturers in the WHO South-East Asia Region in the sustainable production of quality-assured medical products. More than 90 participants attended the training workshop. These included pharmaceutical manufacturers from Bangladesh, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam together with manufacturers’ associations namely Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries, Myanmar Pharmaceutical & Medical Equipment Entrepreneurs' Association, Sri Lanka Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association, and Thailand Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association. Representatives from the Directorate General of Drug Administration Bangladesh, Thailand Food and Drug Administration, Thailand National Health Security Office, Bureau of Medicine and Medical Supply and Vaccine Management also attended.
Dr Jicui Dong, Programme Manager for the Local Production Programme, Regulation of Medicines and Other Health Technologies (RHT), WHO HQ opened the workshop with an introduction of Ms Emer Cooke, Director, RHT, WHO HQ and the invited officials from Thailand, Bangladesh Sri Lanka, and Myanmar to deliver the welcoming remarks. Dr Dong stated that there is continued dependency on imports of essential finished pharmaceutical products in the WHO South-East Asia Region and the need to promote sustainable quality local production.
Highlights of the training workshop were as follows:
- Sustainable local production of quality medical products requires a holistic and coordinated strategy
- Compliance with international GxP standards and norms is key to the production of high quality medical products
- An enabling policy, business and regulatory environment is critical for sustainable local production of quality medical products
- Technology transfer can facilitate local production of vaccines and other difficult to produce medical products in developing countries
Manufacturers from the region appreciated the training workshop with participants calling for country-specific training programmes as the South East Asia region has members with different levels of local production.